


Discussing Roman

by Lyndsey08



Series: A/B/O - Remy/Emile [2]
Category: Cartoon Therapy (Web Series), Sanders Sides (Web Series)
Genre: Arguments, Crying, Light Angst, M/M, Remy/Emile - Freeform, Therapy, apologizing, casual date, discussing past relationships, mentions of past cheating, remile - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-28
Updated: 2020-12-28
Packaged: 2021-03-10 21:34:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,164
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28373985
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lyndsey08/pseuds/Lyndsey08
Summary: Remy has been seeing Dr. Picani for several weeks when he is finally encouraged to open up about his affair with Roman.  Unfortunately, opening up old wounds proves to not be as cathartic as Remy had hoped.  He admits his true feelings about the situation and things go downhill from there.
Relationships: Dr. Emile Picani/Sleep | Remy Sanders, past roman/remy
Series: A/B/O - Remy/Emile [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2078004
Kudos: 14





	Discussing Roman

About a month into therapy, Emile finally encouraged Remy to speak to him about the messy relationship with a man he’d only mentioned skittishly in passing during their sessions.

“Do you want to explore some of that, Remy?” Emile asked gently, adjusting his glasses as he looked at the alpha sitting across from him.

“I don’t actually know if I want to or not,” Remy confessed, “I have a lot of guilt about it, will talking about it help or make it worse?” he asked, picking absently at the sleeve of his coffee cup.

“Well, it may make you feel a little uncomfortable at first but ultimately, I’d encourage you to talk about it if you’re ready to do so,” the beta said with a hopeful smile, “we have to address issues in order to move past them and heal.”

Remy sighed heavily, “Alright, you win, let’s open up this can of worms, where should I start?”

“Maybe you could tell me how you met him?” Emile offered.

“I met him through some mutual friends and I’d see him at parties most weekends,” Remy said, thinking back to the first time he’d seen Roman.

“Sometimes this huge alpha would come with him, he seemed pretty chill most of the time, I’m guessing that was his mate,” Remy speculated quietly.

“But more often than not he’d just come alone and be immediately surrounded by people. He was a little social butterfly and made it look effortless to interact with people. After he showed up a few times in a row by himself I took him a drink and we talked one night for several hours. We drank and danced, but that was it,” Remy raked his hand through his dark hair as he spoke.

“One night, he seemed pretty upset, so I brought him a shot and things went from there,” he continued, finding himself unable to make eye contact with his therapist. “Someone came by and made some off handed comment about his partner and he said something like, “Jan, who?”

“Then we...got extremely drunk and I told him he was beautiful. I kissed him and after a while I took him upstairs to an empty room and fucked him.” The alpha leaned forward to place his head in his hands, slumping forward. “I was so wasted I really had no clue he was mated to someone else, I didn’t pick up on any of the signs and he didn’t act like he had a partner so I thought it was fine.”

“Did you ever realize he was mated? Later on?” Emile questioned as he jotted something quickly in his notebook.

Remy nodded, “Like, maybe the third time, but he told me his mate didn’t care about him, all he did was work. I flattered him as much as I could and gave him my number…” he trailed off before sighing heavily. “I really thought maybe he’d leave him and come date me if he was that unhappy,” he admitted, the words twisting painfully inside his stomach.

“But he didn’t...and I...really liked him, so we kept fucking around. Having him to myself some of the time was better than nothing. We’d plan it out, and meet up on days his mate would have to work late. He’d always come to my apartment so he wouldn’t catch my scent in their home. I really don’t know what the hell I was thinking…”

A slow movement snapped Remy out of his reverie and he blinked, seeing Emile holding out a box of tissues to him. He frowned, feeling confused until the therapist commented softly, “You’re crying…”

Suddenly aware of the dampness on his cheeks, Remy sighed and took the box with a quiet thank you before sitting back.

“Fantastic...sorry,” he muttered, sniffing and leaning forward to rest his forehead against his hands. 

Why did this still hurt so badly to think about?

“May I ask some questions?” Emile questioned gently, “Or do you have more to say right now?”

“Sure, babes, go for it,” Remy sighed, gesturing for him to continue.

“Did you ever do anything with him besides being physically intimate? Did you ever go out anywhere together besides the times at parties or meeting up at your apartment?”

“No...I was actually hoping for that right around the six month mark...and that’s also when I guess Roman left his phone downstairs and his mate saw me text him about hooking up that coming weekend.”

“Roman...?”

“His name was Roman,” the alpha clarified, “he came downstairs and his mate saw the texts, confronted him about it, and he admitted to everything. He called me and was almost hysterical when his mate told him to get out of their apartment. I picked him up somewhere on campus and he came back to my apartment and we just talked...I hated that I’d helped cause the situation but I really liked just being with him casually that night,” the alpha added mournfully.

“We fell asleep that night, just slept next to each other and he let me cuddle with him, it was so nice... and when I woke up in the morning, he was gone. He changed his phone number and I never saw him out anymore after that…” Remy finished his story quietly, his throat aching from crying and speaking at the same time.

“And sometimes I still miss him, which is so fucking stupid...but I do…” he murmured before flopping dramatically onto the sofa sideways.

There was a long silence and the alpha finally turned to look at the therapist. Emile was staring at him intently, his eyes contemplative as he rested the tip of his pen against his lips.

“So...on a scale of one to ten how fucked up am I, doc?” Remy tried to break the silence, “and can you fix me or am I a lost cause?”

“You’re not fucked up, Remy,” Emile said quietly, “Did you make some mistakes? Perhaps, but what human hasn’t? The information you just told me made it seem like you really cared for another man who seemed to return your affections. Not once did you mention sleeping with Roman with the purpose of specifically hurting him or his mate…” he sat his notebook off to the side and turned to look back at the man lying on his sofa.

“It sounds like a part of you may still be grieving the loss of that relationship, no matter the context of how it began,” Emile continued, “and it’s alright to still be hurting from losing Roman.”

Remy blinked at the therapist, “Fuck, Emile...am I that easy to read?” he asked, unsure if he truly wanted to hear the answer.

“Not at all, but we’ve been communicating for several months on a pretty regular basis, I’m beginning to see you and not the mask you seem to keep up around other people. And you’re a beautiful person with so many wonderful things to offer not only to yourself, but to another person whenever you decide to try having a relationship again.”

Remy sat up, “I literally just told you I knowingly had an affair with someone and helped them cheat on their mate for six months...and that makes me some wonderful person who would be fantastic in a relationship with someone new?!” he asked incredulously. 

“And I believe I also pointed out that you’re human and made some mistakes, but you’ve clearly identified that they were not the healthiest choices and you also expressed having a sincere interest in the possibility of having a relationship with him,” Emile countered, undeterred by the alpha’s sudden attitude.

Remy frowned, “Look, isn’t this the part where you tell me how fucked up that all was and give me some tips on how to not ruin every other relationship I’ll ever try to have in the future? You’re making this sound relatively innocent…” he said, gesturing.

“Is that what you want me to say, Remy?” Emile asked quietly.

“Yes! It’s true, you don’t always have to sugarcoat things, doc,” Remy said, crossing his arms.

“Maybe I’m simply examining the situation from a different point of view, Remy,” Emile explained gently. “You’re not fucked up at all, you’re a man who experienced a break up with someone you cared about, and it seems like you’re still hurting from that loss.”

“So the next time I find someone to fuck, I should tell them this story first? It’ll be a great ice breaker, I’m sure…” Remy said in an overly sweet tone, but his dark eyes betrayed the words.

“You’re...being sarcastic, right?” Emile asked, shifting in his chair.

“Look, babes, are you actually going to give me any honest advice today or can I just go? Because this sugary sweet bullshit isn’t doing it for me,” Remy said, clearly irritated as he gestured towards the door.

“I’m sorry my advice isn’t providing any comfort for you today, Remy, but I’m being as honest as I can with you,” Emile explained evenly.

“Cool, I’m sure we can revisit this lovely conversation some other time,” Remy rolled his eyes and pushed himself up to stand, “I’m super stoked we dug all that shit up for nothing.” He moved towards the door quickly and left a baffled therapist in his wake.

***

The following week, Remy spotted Emile’s bright hair across the quad and debated with himself for several uncomfortable minutes before approaching him.

“Hey, Em,” the alpha said with an anxious smile as he adjusted his leather bag over his shoulder.

Emile looked up from his book and gave him a guarded smile in return, “Remy, it’s nice to see you. How are you?”

“Feeling pretty shitty about the way I spoke to you during our last session,” the alpha admitted, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

“You were upset, it’s nothing to worry about,” Emile reassured him with a wave of his hand.

“Still...I’m really sorry, Em. You were trying to help and be supportive and I was...just really uncomfortable to actual deal my feelings about everything. I shouldn’t have snapped at you like that,” Remy said, raking one hand through his hair anxiously.

“Thank you, but you’re really fine,” Emile answered, now smiling genuinely. “You certainly wouldn’t be the first person to get upset during a session…” he added with a small shrug.

“Good to know,” Remy answered, shifting from one foot to the other, “How have you been?”

“I’m fine, are you headed somewhere? If not, you’re more than welcome to sit,” Emile offered, gesturing to the grass next to him.

“I wasn’t headed anywhere in particular but...I guess it is almost 5:30,” Remy answered, “Have you eaten dinner?” he asked cautiously.

Emile shook his head and Remy plunged forward, “Could I interest you in some?” he asked.

Emile studied him for a moment before shrugging, “Sure, why not?” he answered pleasantly.

Remy tried to shove down the intense wave of butterflies that had entered his stomach at that moment. The beta gathered up his things and Remy held out a hand to help him up. He noted that the therapist was incredibly light.

***  
After dinner at a small sandwich shop on the main street of campus, they stepped out under the awning and looked out at the heavy rain that had begun to fall while they were visiting.

“This rain is crazy, can I drive you home so you don’t drown trying to walk there?” Remy asked, as Emile dug out his umbrella.

“That’s nice of you but you really don’t have to do that,” he said. Lightning cracked across the darkened sky and he jumped slightly.

“I swear I don’t mean anything in a creepy way, but I’m literally parked at the end of this street. Please?” Remy offered again.

Emile sighed, “I hate for you to go out of your way though…” he trailed off.

“It’s really no problem, Em,” the alpha reiterated, his dark eyes hopeful.

“Okay, sure. Thank you for that,” Emile conceded with a grin.

Ten minutes later, Remy was dropping him off in front of his apartment.

“Thanks again, you really didn’t have to do this,” Emile said once more.

“Now I won’t have to worry about you getting washed away down some side street, and I got to talk to you a little longer, it’s a win-win,” Remy teased.

“True,” Emile said, nodding, “Go home and have a relaxing night, Remy, sounds like you’ve earned it this week,” he grinned. He gathered his bag and held it close to help it from getting soaked once he stepped outside, “I’ll see you on Tuesday?” he asked hopefully.

“Sure thing, doc,” the alpha agreed, already looking forward to his next appointment.

“Night,” Emile said with a grin before he opened the door and hurried towards his front door. Remy waited until the beta had unlocked the door to his apartment before pulling away.


End file.
